Kategorie: PS4

As the name suggests, there is a lot to be discovered in Unexplored: Unlocked Edition. The fun is, of course, making those discoveries for yourself, but it doesn’t hurt to be pre-equipped with some sage advice before embarking on your first adventure in this acclaimed roguelite action-RPG.

Here then, are seven things you need to know before descending into the Dungeon of Doom…

1. Make the first 100 or so deaths really count

Unexplored is a roguelite, so you’re going to be dying a lot, particularly when you first get started. But, if you’re smart, those deaths needn’t be in vain. After every death, you’re presented with a list of ‘Rewards’ – pay attention to these as completing the criteria for a reward will in-turn make things easier for future runs.

Completing specific rewards is also the way to unlock different character classes (there are eight classes in total). Rogue is probably one of the easiest to unlock — pick a lock on a door or chest successfully — and comes with some decent perks, such as improved stealth, ability to spot hidden traps, and pick locks. Wizard is a personal fave as he’s adept at identifying potions and scrolls, which can be a great help. And he wears a hat.

2. The map is your ticket to survival

If you have any aspirations of escaping the dungeon alive, you need to pay close attention to the map. Unexplored uses cyclic dungeon generation, which means no two runs are ever the same i.e. you’re always going into the unknown.

The map can be seen on the HUD and marks the position of doors, levers, chests etc. For a closer look, press L1 to expand the map — this allows you to better see areas on the current level that you haven’t explored yet. It also reveals a secondary vertical map of the dungeon (top-left in the image above), which shows if there are multiple paths leading down to the next level.

3. Forges can really help you forge ahead

If you’re carrying a ring or sigil and you come across a forge, don’t be shy — get busy forging. You can combine rings and/or sigils with weapons and armour to enhance or enchant them, producing some very useful results. There are loads of combinations, so experiment with what you’ve got. Also, using a forge for the first time unlocks a Trophy. Nice.

4. The Dungeon of Doom has its own visual language — learn it

While the dungeon layout is different for every run, there are visual consistencies that you should familiarize yourself with. The tops of doors, for example, indicate whether a door is unlocked, locked, or barred — see the different door designs in the annotated screenshot above.

Levers are marked with a specific icon to indicate whether it controls a door, turret, spikes, vent, or bridge. And then there are altars, pedestals, and even rugs marked with shapes and symbols that can offer a clue to… something. Color-coding is also used, most evidently in the inventory and can be particularly handy for determining the effects of a potion or scroll that hasn’t been fully identified yet (i.e. Red = bad. Blue = good).

5. Pay attention to any advice the game gives you

While Unexplored never holds your hand, it does give a steady drip-feed of tips and clues — you just need to be observant and not miss what’s in front of you. Whether it’s basic tutorial stuff — use left-stick to move, right-stick to look/aim — or hints about puzzles or future encounters given via books scattered around the dungeon, you need to pay attention to all of it. Two handy tips:

• If you’re not sure what something is, pause the game and use the right-stick to hover over the relevant point of interest (be it an object, enemy, or whatever) and you’ll be given a brief description.
• Press Circle on any item in your inventory to inspect it. This will provide descriptions and other relevant info, such as stats and enchantments.

6. You can learn a lot from your journal

As previously mentioned, the information that books impart can be vital for successful adventuring — being forewarned is forearmed. Anything you read in a book is automatically logged in your journal, so check it often — it’s accessed via the inventory screen.

Once you’ve opened the journal, you can select a ‘Filter for current level’ option and that shows the information/clues relevant to the level you are currently on. So, checking your journal at the start of every new level is a strategically prudent habit to get into.

7. Be curious and cautious in equal measure

The urge to explore and discover is driven by curiosity, but you also need to exercise caution if you want to avoid a premature death. For example, if you’ve got an unidentified potion, instead of quaffing it recklessly, maybe wait and you’ll come across a scroll of ‘Detect Magic’ (and if you can be even more patient, wait until you’ve got several unidentified magic items before using the scroll).

And if something seems suspiciously like a puzzle of sorts, chances are it probably is. But before rushing to solve it, bear in mind that attempting to randomly solve a puzzle (i.e. without having any clues to the solution first) can lead to it breaking, consequently leaving it in a forever unsolvable state. Also, make sure you’re prepared for the possibility of a bad outcome. In the screenshot above, you can see that when I light the four braziers, rather than showering me with gold, it spawns a powerful enemy. Boo.

We hope you enjoy exploring the Dungeon of Doom when Unexplored: Unlocked Edition launches February 19. In the meantime, feel free to give the trailer a watch:

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bzcYJdZF9j0&w=640&h=360]

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The arcade comes home with SNK 40th Anniversary Collection on PS4 starting March 19 — relive 24 classics from the golden age of retro gaming. Then dive into Museum Mode to immerse yourself in SNK’s rich history, boasting an abundance of high-definition artwork and rare promotional assets. Today, developer Brandon Sheffield discusses how these materials were carefully researched and lovingly compiled, as well as the importance of preserving such history.

How have you come to work on this collection? What was the archival process like?

Actually, I worked on a Digital Eclipse archive as one of my first game writing jobs! Way back in 2006 I wrote some quiz questions for Capcom Classics Collection: Volume 2, so with the resurrection of Digital Eclipse as a company, I was really excited to get back into it, now that I have a lot more experience. Together with Frank Cifaldi, who runs the Video Game History Foundation, I wanted to push our archival and research process even further with our first SNK title.

Essentially, Frank gathered as much printed material, game boards, and various scraps of information as possible. He scanned and cleaned up those materials, and tested the games in the collection against the boards to make sure they were accurate, and if they weren’t, went to lengths to fix that (such as re-recording or dumping new audio). Meanwhile, I interviewed former SNK staff members, and gathered information about the games for use in the museum, as well as whatever concept art former SNK artists had squirreled away.

In one case I went to Japan, then took a 7.5 hour journey by train, bus, and car, to reach a specific arcade game warehouse out in the middle of nowhere, in a town called Tatsuno. I spoke with the proprietor there, because he had some of the games about which we knew almost nothing. Without that trip, a lot of our info would’ve been wrong! So that’s how dedicated we are to trying to do this right.

How did certain games get chosen to be featured in Museum Mode?

This was a back-and-forth between Digital Eclipse and SNK. SNK had certain titles they wanted, and so did we. One important thing we did was find a way to replicate the Loop Lever. The Loop Lever was a unique joystick that SNK developed which allowed the player to rotate (by twisting the joystick) and move (by tilting the joystick) at the same time. No prior collection has been able to replicate that because there’s simply no hardware that supports it. We split the movement and rotation across two joysticks, making these games fully playable again, even if they’re not playable in the exact original format. It’s more important that people have the experience of the game, so we wanted to make that happen. Once we did, we tried to get as many Loop Lever-compatible games in the collection as we could, and we got pretty close to all of them!

Aside from that, we knew we wanted Athena, we knew we wanted Crystalis, and we knew we had to showcase that song in Psycho Soldier! The first vocal track ever in an arcade game? How could we resist!

Did you have previous experience with SNK (such as having played the original titles in SNK 40th Anniversary Collection)? If so, how does it feel to return to those games now?

I’ve been playing SNK games all my life. Of course I played a lot of Neo Geo games, and I was an insane collector of Neo Geo Pocket games, but I also played games like Ikari II in a local arcade during high school too. Coming back to these games is almost like a breath of fresh air, especially with the renewed Loop Lever controls. Honestly I am better at Ikari now than I ever was because of that!

But the real revelation for me came as I researched these titles and why they were important. There were so many things that SNK did before anyone else, that honestly I didn’t even know about before doing this research. They created one of the first playable tutorials. One of the first games with the concept of a health bar. It was a great time of innovation in the industry, and I really felt that as I interviewed the people who made them.

What are some highlights the player should take away from Museum Mode?

Some people have likened the collection to a digital, playable history book, and I really like that idea. SNK is most famous for games that began in its Neo Geo era, but when you play this game, when you go through the Museum, you see the roots of those games. SNK’s first fighting game is here. Sure, it’s nothing compared to Fatal Fury or The King of Fighters. But it’s the first. How did they get from there to where they are now? That’s what we want people to see.

Back then, SNK was making new, bespoke boards for many of their games. If they wanted to do something new, they not only had to come up with the gameplay and art innovations, but also hardware to support it. So while a game like Vanguard might feel a bit stiff in today’s world, we want to make sure everyone understands its importance, and its place in history. Before this collection I feel that SNK’s important history was under-discussed, and my hope is that by reading and playing with our “digital history book” players will feel the impact of that history.

What are your thoughts on the importance of preserving video game history, and today’s gaming audiences/industry in general?

I think it’s incredibly important to preserve our history, especially as ancient game boards disappear, and source code is lost. Emulation is literally the only way we can present these games, because there’s not a soul alive with the source code to most of these projects. But we can make sure that emulation is as close to the original if we have the boards, and that’s what we try to do.

There’s value in appreciating the incredible craft of these creators, the speed with which they had to make these games, and the intense labor that went into them. The path they paved helped us get to where we are now, establishing the gameplay and art standards upon which we’ve built a global industry.

On top of that, when I spoke to the original developers of these games, they were so happy to speak. They said that they felt their part in history had been forgotten, as people usually speak about the Neo Geo when they speak of SNK. They were simply glad that anyone still wanted to hear their stories, and learn from them. To me their contribution to the game industry is so valuable, and I’m very happy we can share a piece of that with everyone.

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Hey y’all! We here at Idea Factory International are super excited for the North American PS4 launch on February 19 of Death end re;Quest, the glitched out JRPG! We got some exclusive, behind-the-scenes look with the President of Compile Heart and Producer, Norihisa Kochiwa, as well as the lead artist, Kei Nanameda, and their take on the creation of the world of Death end re;Quest. The game will be available next week, including an awesome digital Deluxe Bundle now available for preorder at PlayStation Store.

The Story So Far

Before our special talk with Kochiwa-san and Nanameda-san, let’s take a look at the story of Death end re;Quest. The story begins with one of the main protagonists, Shina Ninomiya, who is stricken with a bad case of amnesia. Unbeknownst to Shina, she is trapped in a virtual reality MMORPG designed by Enigma Games, a leading company known for creating a vast, multi-terrained gaming landscape, World’s Odyssey. Shina and the lead programmer, Arata Mizunashi, were in charge of developing World’s Odyssey, but the project was unfortunately halted after her disappearance.

One year later, Arata receives a mysterious email and realizes the email came from his long-lost friend. Scrambling through the lines of code, Arata realizes that Shina herself is trapped in World’s Odyssey and finds that the only way for Shina to escape is to complete the good ending of the game – a task that has a success rate of 1%. Arata slowly realizes that not only are these forces wreaking havoc in World’s Odyssey, but also on the other side of the computer screen. What a mystery wrapped in an enigma!

Now Entering… World’s Odyssey

The captivating story of Death end re;Quest is one thing, but the gameplay also explores exciting mechanics that JRPG fans will find familiar and unique! At will, players can switch between visual novel investigations with Arata in the real world and jumping into the World’s Odyssey where Shina and her friends duke it out against dastardly bugs. During the visual novel gameplay, players meet a myriad of game developers that assist Arata in figuring out these mysterious forces that caused Shina to disappear. Change the visual novel perspective as players jump into the World’s Odyssey, where players can control Shina and her band of friends in a JRPG-esque fashion.

Bask in the glory of the Godot Ruins

And while this game does deliver your classic Compile Heart JRPG battle systems, the game also turns everything you know about RPGs upside-down. Each character will need to punch in three attacks or skills known as the Triact System. Characters will also have the possibility of learning new skills, notified by a light bulb, depending on the combination players choose within the Triact System. This system is called Flash Drive. Once you set the Triact commands, characters will have the ability to launch enemies with the Knockback System, allowing players to strategically angle and combo attacks toward other enemies, walls, and even other party members for more devastating damage!

Choose from 3 attacks and/or skills in the Triact System

Another system feature players will need to keep a watchful eye for are Field Bugs! Field Bugs are rampant in every battle field and players must be aware of the positive or negative effects it can have on your character. Each Field Bug also varies in the amount of Corruption it can place on a character, which brings us to our next system, Glitch Mode — a system that transform your party member into an unstoppable force. The Glitch Mode transformation can be reached as soon as a party member’s Corruption Level reaches 80%. Once in Glitch Mode, players can also access special attacks that can be extremely useful in any tough battle. However, players will need to keep a close eye on each character’s Corruption Level. If it is too high, it can have severe consequences!

Shina deploying her special Glitch Mode Attack

Need some extra power-ups and buffs during battle? Because Arata is unable to physically fight alongside with Shina, he uses his programming skills to strengthen the party and change the tide of battle! With Arata’s Battle Jack System, he can deploy three different skills to help out during Shina’s battle. As soon as players eliminate 50% of Field Bugs on the battle field, players can use the three available skills in the Battle Jack System: Code Jack, Summon, and Install Genre. Code Jack allows Arata to apply cheat codes during battle, which can buff party members or debuff enemies. The Summon features gives the ability to summon captured Entoma Queens, which are the bosses players will run across throughout World’s Odyssey. And lastly, we have Install Genre, which alters the game mechanics and turns the battle into a fighter, shooter, puzzle, billiards, and even slot!

Looks like a Jackpot to me!

And now that you know the story and gameplay, let’s talk with Norihisa Kochiwa and Kei Nanameda, and get some sweet tidbits in the creative process of Death end re;Quest! Below also shows some sketches done by Kei Nanameda!

What is your name and what was your involvement with Death end re;Quest?

Norihisa Kochiwa: I am Norihisa Kochiwa, President of Compile Heart and the producer for Death end re;Quest.

Kei Nanameda: I am Kei Nanameda, Lead Character Designer at Compile Heart. For Death end re;Quest, I was in charge of character-related areas, such as character designs, standing portraits, and event CGs.

Death end re;Quest is a refreshing take on JRPGs. When you were first introduced to Death end re;Quest, were you taken aback by the concept of the game? Any first thoughts when you were pitched the game?

Kochiwa: The project began as a dark fantasy-type RPG. As I gathered the team for it, we were able to combine the efforts of several talented creators like Kedouin-san for the scenario, Nanamedakei, and huke.

Nanameda: When I became involved with the project, the only thing they had were concepts, such as “dark world,” “bugs,” and a “game world setting,” so I thought, “Wow! This is really interesting!”

At the same time though, I had to think, “How am I going to reflect these themes in the characters?”

Is there a particular character in Death end re;Quest you really enjoyed and/or empathized with? Any characters that you completely despised?

Kochiwa: I like all of the characters, but I especially like Shina. I admire her positivity through the various harsh obstacles she has to overcome.

Nanameda: My favorite character is Shina. Even in design terms, all of my favorite things are packed into her appearance. In the actual game, her character undergoes several trials, so I hope people root for her! A character I despised? I can’t think of one. Whether they are allies or enemies, each one stands out to me, so from a creator’s standpoint, I am attached to all of them.

However, from the players’ perspectives, I may feel a certain distaste for a specific enemy character…

Nanameda’s early sketches of Shina

What kind of obstacles did you face when creating/writing? Did you find these obstacles much different on other Sony titles you’ve worked in the past?

Kochiwa: There were many story elements, so it was difficult to connect them all. Of all the titles we’ve worked on thus far, this one had the most bad endings.

As for the battle system, we had double the features than in our previous titles, which presented another challenge. One such feature is the Knockback feature, but we also included a Summon and Install Genre feature to make it more akin to an RPG. Thanks to the staff’s hard work, everything integrated together well, making for a deep, strategic system.

Round 1, FIGHT!

Nanameda: I touched on this briefly in the second question, but I struggled most with how to implement the “bug” theme in the character design. Because it pertained to the kind of bugs that exist in the game world, I wanted to include some digital details in their appearance.

Some of our titles have aspects of the game world inside of them, such as the Neptunia series, so I wanted to set it apart from those games. I wanted to honor what makes Death end unique, so it took some time for me to come up with a solid idea.

In the end, I overcame the obstacle by thinking of bugs not only as the computer bugs, but as literal insects. That set the tone for me. Whenever I do character designs, there is always a moment where everything comes together, which motivates me to think, “I can do it!” Until then, all I can do is keep pushing until the breakthrough comes.

Shina displays her wide range of attacks

Let’s say you were in Arata’s or Shina’s position. How would you have reacted (as Arata) in finding out that Shina, your best friend, is stuck in a defunct video game for over a year? And vice versa. How would you have reacted (as Shina) in finding out that you’re stuck in a video game?

Nanameda’s early sketches of Arata

Kochiwa: If I were Arata or Shina, trapped inside of a cancelled game I had been working on, I would likely ask a debug company to identify the source of the bug. Then I’d ask all of the programmers to fix the game to save her (laughs).

Nanameda: If I were Arata, then I am sure I would feel compelled to save her somehow, to try and explore all options, but I know sometime through the middle, I may get to the point of giving up. It’s a testament to how strong and heroic Arata is.
As for Shina, I think I would be so enthralled that I was inside of the world I had developed that I would never progress the story. I would be too interested in speaking with the NPCs.

Working as a game developer has gotten more complicated than ever…

As director/an artist, you are constantly influenced by the things around you (subconsciously or consciously) during the time of your work process. Were there any particular things (video games, art, music, etc.) that influenced your creation process?

Kochiwa: For Death end re;Quest, since there a central bug theme, I researched cheats and debug commands from older games (think ↑↑,↓↓, →←,→←, B, A, Select, Start). Older games employed those features more, which I took into consideration for this game.

Access Arata’s computer and investigate all the clues!

Nanameda: For Death end re;Quest, I was influenced by Huke, who was in charge of the Ludens’ character designs, and Kedouin, the scenario writer. Additionally, I visited the Art section at a bookstore, and also drew inspiration from characters and illustrations I see on Pixiv and Twitter.

Nanameda’s early sketches of Arata’s Avatar in World’s Odyssey

Deadlines can be intimidating for any creator. What did you do to keep yourself grounded when working?

Kochiwa: When producing games, you must always be mindful of deadlines. Especially when developing for the PS4. We have to be very specific, down to the minute detail, so that our staff can use all of their time to make the game happen. Part of that includes making hints to progress the game, and implementing bad endings that trigger when players reach certain locations or make certain choices. If we had no deadline to make this game, then we would have included more bad endings. However, more of those don’t necessarily make a better game, so I think what we ended up with had the best balance.

Nanameda: I try not to get worked up over one thing. It’s important, of course, to be persistent in your work, and I do spend time on things when I have to, but I make sure not to focus on little details so much as look at the bigger picture. I have to draw a line in myself.

Especially in the game production field, my job doesn’t end solely with character design. Beyond that, I have to consider the 3D-rendering, standing art motion creation, UI, and various assets. I have to take all of that into consideration.

Go Shina! It’s yo’ birthday!

Do you have any PlayStation releases (past or present) that you admire? Why are these games so close to your heart?

Kochiwa: Spider-Man. They replicated the true vastness of New York City, and Spider-Man’s movement is inspirational from a design standpoint. Playing it is so fun.

Nanameda: I love character designs for fighting games. I am especially influenced by the Guilty Gear series. The silhouettes and unique designs excite me. They’re absolutely wonderful. I also like the Disgaea and DanganRonpa series. It’s hard to explain, but they both have unique-looking characters who possess a certain venom. I appreciate works like that.

Lastly, do you have anything else to add with the upcoming launch of Death end re;Quest?

Kochiwa: Death end re;Quest is a fusion of cute characters that Compile Heart excels at, dark fantasy themes, and horror elements, all in one game. We put our hearts into this game. By making the bugs the central theme, we were able to tie in several twists and turns to excite our players, so please buy a copy and see for yourself!

Nanameda: For Death end, not only are the character designs influenced by the “bug” concept, but so are the scenario, system, monsters, and maps. The bug motif is everywhere, so I think people will find it distinctive and enjoyable.

Additionally, the story is enthralling. There are numerous bad endings, some are quite shocking, but I hope players stay determined to make it to the end.

It would make me happy for you to not only love the game, but love the characters too!

And there you have it everyone! A special thanks to Norihisa Kochiwa and Kei Nanameda for taking the time to talk with us! Death end re;Quest will be pluggin’ into your PS4 world this February 19 in physical and digital format. And remember, before the game launches next week, you can still preorder the Deluxe Bundle and save 10% if you are a PS+ member! Hope everyone can check it out!

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Website: LINK

Think you’ve seen everything Raccoon City has to offer? Think again, as The Ghost Survivors comes to PS4 on February 15 as a free update for Resident Evil 2. This set of stories provides “what if” scenarios for characters you encounter throughout the main game, providing an alternate look at what things might have been like if they survived the horrors of Raccoon City.

There’s a good chance you’ve seen or played The 4th Survivor, a tough-as-nails additional mode that follows Umbrella Security Services (U.S.S.) agent Hunk as he escapes from the depths of the city in order to complete his mission, or The Tofu Survivor, a non-canon gameplay mode which follows a particularly determined block of bean curd doing its best to avoid certain death (and maybe being sautéed with some vegetables and spices). The Ghost Survivors has a similar premise – escape from Raccoon City by any means necessary – but this time, you’ll be playing as three characters that never survived that fateful night:

No Time to Mourn features Robert Kendo, owner of the famous (and aptly named) Gun Shop Kendo. Those who have played the game may already know how his sad tale ends, but in The Ghost Survivors, he’s given a second chance when an old friend with a helicopter radios in to pick him up. Packing up what weapons he can, Kendo sets out into the streets to seek a way out from the infected city. On his way, a new type of poisonous zombie stands between him and freedom.

Way before the events of Resident Evil 2 took place, the fate of the mayor’s daughter, Katherine, was already sealed. In Runaway, her story takes her down a very different path. Seeking to escape Raccoon City with a certain someone, Katherine Warren must navigate the streets while avoiding a strangely mutated type of zombie that can only be stopped with particularly powerful ammunition. Play carefully, and you might survive.

Out of the shadows comes a forgotten U.S.S. agent. Thought to have been wiped out with his squad, the appropriately named Ghost makes his debut in Forgotten Soldier. Deep within the laboratory underneath the city, another soldier (besides Hunk) attempts his escape. Having to deal with hordes of monsters is bad enough, but what do you do when they’re covered in armor? This especially challenging scenario will put even The 4th Survivor veterans to the test.

Finish each scenario on its regular difficulty, or give them a shot in the unique Training mode. Unlike other modes, Training will lower the difficulty a bit by giving you additional items and item slots to start out with, and makes a great way to learn enemy positions and routes before you tackle each scenario on their standard, more challenging difficulty. It’s also a great way to understand some of the mechanics of The Ghost Survivors. Unlike The 4th Survivor and The Tofu Survivor, you can pick up more than the items you start with, but instead of finding items in the environment, you’ll find pickups by defeating specific zombies with backpacks, or grabbing items out of vending machines. Choose carefully, though; once you take an item from a vending machine, you’re locked out of the other two items for that run! Plan ahead, and you just might make it through.

There’s plenty to do across these three “what if” scenarios. Alongside bragging rights for completing each scenario, you’ll also have access to fun new challenges and trophies specific to The Ghost Survivors. Completing challenges will unlock accessories to decorate your character, including a tiger mask, a cuddly raccoon that sits on your character’s head, and more! Go for the high score, the fastest time, or see how many challenges (and accessories) you can unlock.

Three imaginative scenarios await you in The Ghost Survivors, out February 15 as a free update for Resident Evil 2 on PlayStation 4. Don’t forget to swing by the PlayStation Store to grab free ’98 Costumes for Claire and Leon, also available on the 15th. These costumes are just as polygonal as you remember from the original Resident Evil 2 on PlayStation, and make for a great nostalgia trip. See you all in Raccoon City.

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Website: LINK